The Tweeting world woke up today to find that many Klout scores have dropped, in some cases to nearly nothing. Regardless of the cause, this is a huge screw-up for Klout, because it raises a question among its believers, “What does Klout Score measure anyway?”

Tonight, a few of us here in Massachusetts are having a discussion about what industry and government groups can do to Fuel Massachusett’s Digital Economy. As New York kicked off their plan to be the World’s leading digital city yesterday, its time to ask what role Boston and Massachusetts aspire to in the digital economy.

As the journalism business becomes fixated on hyper local coverage, the value of a “second paper” has never been greater. I’d like to tell you about three of my favorite global second papers: The Christian Science Monitor, the Epoch Times and GlobalPost.

On Fridays I like to share news of topics and people you might want to keep an eye on. Ben Brooks’ post lays what ails Microsoft at the feet of CEO, Steve Ballmer. And my “other” local paper, the Boston Herald, makes a fuss over a federal messaging chip that will be working in all new US mobile phones by April.

Last night I was with Microsoft Online Services President, Qi Lu, who shared Microsoft’s view of the web’s future. Microsoft’s Skype purchases fits within a set of strategic themes that reflect how Microsoft sees its self and the digital landscape.

As some on the net bemoan that “the best minds of our generation are thinking about how to make people click on Facebook ads”, I’d invite you to question the premise. Perhaps the best minds are using ideas to change the World, and those who specialize at monetizing the the medium are just their elite infrastructure.

About Dave Wieneke, Digital Strategist

The future of digital experiences will be built by strategists who grasp the full array of emerging business, social, and technical models. Specialties in user experience, branding, application design, and data science are laying the foundation for richer user experiences and business models breakthrough products and revenue based marketing.

UsefulArts is a soapbox to discuss the front line of digital experience, and the agencies and platforms that enable it. Digital business needs a cadre of leaders who can connect c-level enterprise thinking with the ways these new interaction models can help organizations to matter more to their most important stakeholders.